artist night

tonight is the second time the musicians have gathered at the richter house. it's pretty interesting to listen in as they process through each other's poetry, listen to mp3's of speakers talking about the creative process, and jam together. we had a good meal together, and a rousing discussion of economics, the collapse of currencies, and the possibility of returning to a gold standard currency, before moving on to more creative times.

division of labor, in a sense. let those who are good at something and passionate about have at it. it's the basic idea behind capitalism, right. and yet, i think one of the healthiest places to be is an amatuer artist. i wonder sometimes if at the same time we've gained some amazing work by the rise of the international superstar professional entertainers, we haven't also lost most of the community beauty of folk art, the art of real people with normal families and regular jobs.

i have a painting by my grandmother in my office. i think it's beautiful. she was a farm-wife, and mother of 6. mostly i remember her after her stroke, hemiplegic and aphasic. i was still pretty young. it means a lot to me that there on the farm, in the quiet hours, she made beauty. quietly and alone, she painted. that is precious.